An Encouragement to Seek Knowledge

On the authority of Mu’aawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, he said: The Messenger of Allah (صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) said: “Whomever Allah wants good for, He gives him understanding of the religion.” [Collected by al-Bukhaaree and Muslim]

Benefits:

1. The Virtue of Understanding the Religion – because the Messenger of Allah (صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) made it a sign of good for His servant since he gave him the success of seeking it (i.e. understanding of the religion) and studying it.

2. The Virtue of the Scholars of Sharee’ah – that is because notice about the virtue of knowledge of the Sharee’ah is notice about the virtue of its possessors, and the people of knowledge are those who combine between knowledge and implementation.

3. The First Thing that Enters into “Understanding of the Religion” is Creed – then after that comes acts of worship, social interactions and other issues of the religion, and the one that deserves the most attention is that which is connected to the tawheed of Allah in His lordship, in worship of Him and in His names and attributes.

4. The Danger of Abstaining from Knowledge of the Sharee’ah, and Aversion from Learning It – because whomever Allah does not want good for, He does not give him understanding of the religion.

5. Knowledge is Granted from Allah – so the servant must ask his Lord to increase him in knowledge, and he must tread the path of learning, and treading that path is done by taking knowledge from nurturing scholars.

6. If a Muslim is not able to Seek Knowledge Comprehensively, Then it is upon Him to Learn what Allah has made Obligatory upon Him – from at-Tawheed and acts of worship that Allah made incumbent upon him daily, and if an affair is confusing to him, he asks the people of knowledge about it. Allah, the Most High, says: “And ask the people of knowledge if you do not know.”